There are numerous file card systems commercially available today which employ a stack of cards approximately 4".times.6" in size which are assembled one behind the other. In older forms of this type of filing system, information was printed directly on the cards and the entire stack was positioned in a wooden, plastic, or metal box for removal, one card at a time.
This form of file system, while inexpensive, was not particularly convenient for one requiring frequent access to individual cards. Subsequently, a system was developed by the Visu-flex Corporation of California in which flat, flexible dividers or separator cards were constructed and stored in such manner that they allowed easy access and retrieval of separate media cards, such as microfiche, placed between each separator card. In this system, individual separator cards stand erect and evenly spaced in relation to their container, yet provide easy access to the removable media cards. The divider can be flexed to expose to view the face of any desired single media card and permit its removal. When a group of dividers or separator cards in the container are flexed and compressed together to expose a single media card, the group of dividers so flexed becomes essentially spring loaded, and when released, individual dividers spring back to erect, evenly spaced, relation in the container.
The removable media card, film, or paper stock, for example, being filed between the separator cards, are each thus protected from the other relative to abrasion, static cohesion, etc.
Such systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,301,263, 3,785,520 and 4,232,463. The system is referred to as the Touch-Fan filing principle.
The media cards and dividers or separators are contained in custom containers. The bottoms of the dividers are centrally apertured and a retaining rod passes through the stack of dividers. The media cards are not apertured, thus permitting their easy removal. The retaining rod, while itself removable, is integral with the custom container designed for this specific card file system.
This is but one example of a file card system. There are many others commercially available, but generally speaking, each requires its own separate container.
It is an object of this invention to provide a removable, replaceable assembly for supporting a file system of the type which includes a plurality of dividers centrally apertured near their bottoms to receive a locking rod and which dividers are assembled one behind the other to separate removable media cards.
There are many containers such as trays, drawers and the like which are intended to have universal application which are not necessarily designed for any one file card system, however, if a tray is designed for a particular system only, when the system becomes obsolete, so does the tray.
It is accordingly another object of this invention to design a file card support system for retrofit or adaptation to existing trays, drawers and the like which will permit a file system of the type described above to be accommodated within such existing trays or drawers.
It is another object of this invention to provide a file system support assembly for a file card system the type embodying the Touch-Fan filing principle for use on a desk top or similar supporting surfaces.